Bulela Ditswe curse haunts ministers

Tsaone Basimanebotlhe | Monday October 30, 2023 06:00

In Goodhope/Mmathethe, two Cabinet members being Finance Minister, Peggy Serame and Edwin Dikoloti face each other in BDP primaries. The duo was close before the demarcation of the new constituency which was necessitated by the delimitation exercise. Dikoloti is the Member of Parliament (MP) for Mmathethe/Molapowabojwang which covers 70% of the new Goodhope/Mmathethe constituency. Before the constituencies were merged Serame was supposed to replace area MP Eric Molale who is retiring at the end of this term. Dikoloti is an elected MP while Serame is a Specially Elected Member of Parliament (SEMP). Mmadinare constituency also has two Ministers, Molebatsi Molebatsi and Kefentse Mzwinila locking horns. Molebatsi and Mzwinila will renew their Bulela Ditswe rivalry after the former defeated the latter in the 2018 primary elections. The incumbent, Molebatsi, will aim to retain his seat against Mzwinila, who is a SEMP. In Molepolole South, another highly contested constituency, Kabo Morwaeng, the State President Minister is facing stiff competition from councillor Jeffrey Sibisibi. It became evident that Morwaeng was nervous about his position when he made a complaint to the BDP Central Committee (CC) alleging that Sibisibi was defying the party rules and regulations by engaging in early campaigns before the writ of the primaries was issued.

In Ramotswa, the dynamics of Bamalete legal tussle with the government could have compromised Minister of Minerals and Energy Lefoko Moagi but Bulela Ditswe will be his main test as he tries to win back the tribe’s trust. While Moagi was expected to face a stiff competition from fellow Cabinet colleague, Minister of Environment and Tourism, Philda Kereng, Mmegi has since established that Kereng who is a SEMP will not contest Bulela Ditswe. Moagi vs. Kereng was supposed to be another big battle but now Moagi's strong challenger is Dr Derrick Tlhoiwe. Tlhoiwe is a healthcare practitioner, as a public health specialist. Moagi made his debut in Parliament in 2019, but he was under attack after he failed to verify whether or not Kgosi Mosadi Seboko was telling the truth when she accused President Mokgweetsi Masisi of meddling in the Judiciary.

But when Parliament in March removed Kgosi Mosadi from the five-member Pan-African Parliament (PAP), Moagi claimed he did not support the move and indicated that he did not agree with Kgosi Mosadi’s removal. However, the tricky part is that some Bamalete are still angry with the government over the farmland known as Forest Hill 9-KO which government wanted to take. Bamalete have retained the title deed for Forest Hill 9-KO farm and have expressed erosion of trust in the BDP especially Moagi. Moagi found himself between a hard rock and a hard place by virtue of backing the government's position against his own tribe. In Gaborone Bonnington North constituency, Labour and Home Affairs Minister Annah Mokgethi will face dual challenges from Poloko Pitwane and Ookeditse Malesu. Pitwane popular for his student politics came to prominence in the 2014 General Election when he dropped his candidacy to back Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) president Duma Boko, handing him the student vote against Mokgethi.

He later joined the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) and now faces former nemesis Mokgethi. Malesu is well-known in the sports cycles with stints at Botswana Football Association (BFA) as chief executive officer (CEO) and Botswana National Sports Commission as additional member. Malesu is an all-round sportsman having also held positions of leadership in swimming and karate. He once contested for the BFA presidency post but lost. In Francistown East constituency, Assistant Minister of Youth Empowerment, Sport and Culture Development Buti Billy will face his main challenger in the Mayor of Francistown Godisang Radisigo. Ministers who will not be contesting Bulela Ditswe are Minister of Transport and Public Works, Molale, and Kgotla Autlwetse of Local Government and Rural Development. With the potential to lose more Cabinet members to Bulela Ditswe, President Mokgweetsi Masisi has made an appeal to BDP members to elect quality candidates who will not give him trouble. Speaking at Gudigwa recently, Masisi said; “Ke kopa gore le ntlhophele batho ba banang le boleng ba ba ka rongwang ditiro tsotlhe. Le tlhophe le lebile gore a motho o ka wina di general election, o ka nna mo councillor, Mopalamente kana Minister (I ask you to vote for eligible people who can be tasked with everything. When you vote please look at candidates who can win us the general election and become a councillor, MP or minister),” Masisi emphasised.

In 2019, Masisi expressed the same frustration saying the voter did not give him the quality he needed to select Cabinet from. Early this year in Shoshong, the President encouraged members to vote for MPs who can defend the party when it is under attack and those who attend party activities. It will not be the first time Cabinet Ministers lose in large numbers in primary election and general election hence Masisi’s frustration. In the 2018 Bulela Ditswe also claimed various ministers then like Lobatse’s Sadique Kebonang, Mmadinare’s Mzwinila, Bobonong’s Kgathi , Alfred Madigele and Molefhi just to name but a few.